1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is in the field of conveying grain such as wheat, shelled corn, oats and other granular materials from point to point, typically from a storage bin to a truck or from one storage bin to another. More particularly, the invention can be easily transported from one site to another and easily maneuvered and adjusted on a particular site to convey grain from one point to another. This is particularly significant when working in a confined area with a number of bins, and with restricted access to the bins and other points of intake or discharge.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Prior art grain conveyors have lacked the transportability, maneuverability and adjustability of the present invention. For example, apparatus such as that disclosed in the U.S. Pat. Nos. to Beldin (2,610,727), Wilcoxen (2,746,592), Coats et al. (3,189,168), Mayrath (3,249,210), Kopaska (3,379,301) and Oliver (4,142,621) cannot be folded for transport and the elevation of the intake and discharge ends of the conveyors shown cannot be selectively independently adjusted. When one end is raised the other end is lowered. These prior art devices accordingly lack the transportability, maneuverability and adjustability of the present invention.
Other prior art Pat. Nos. such as MeHarry (3,337,068), Davidow (3,550,793), Tyler (3,584,732) and Koehnen (3,719,268) disclose foldable grain conveyors mounted on a truck or trailer, combine, fertilizer or feed tank or portable feed mill or mixer. While these patents show various ways of folding a conveyor, none has the adjustability and maneuverability of the present invention.
The present invention also includes a sweep conveyor section for sweeping and conveying grain from a flat surface, such as the bottom of a storage bin, into the inclined intake conveyor section, a feature not disclosed in the prior art.
Permanently installed conveyor systems lack the flexibility, maneuverability and adjustability of the present invention. They are capable of use, of course, only at the site where installed and cannot be transported from site to site.